Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to compositions of matter for regulating plant growth, with certain 2-methylenesuccinamic acid derivatives comprising the active ingredient thereof, and also to methods for regulating plant growth comprising application to a plant locus of an effective amount of such derivatives. The invention further relates to novel 2-methylenesuccinamic acid compounds, per se, which can be used as the active ingredient in the compositions and the treatments according to the invention, and also to the preparation of such novel derivatives.
In the text of the present patent application, the expressions "for regulating growth" and "growth regulators" are to be understood as having their common meaning in the French language, which corresponds to "growth substances" in the Anglo-Saxon literature, the word "growth" relating to the production of living material and not simply to the modification of the size of plants. "Growth regulators" will therefore be understood hereafter as connoting products which are capable of modifying the physiology of plants in a variety of manners.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the field of agriculture, it is of course a permanent aim of agronomists to improve crop yields, especially in the case of crops which are significantly economically important, such as, e.g., a soya crop. One measure with a view towards achieving this aim is to combat the parasites and predators of these crops by destroying the weeds and the harmful insects in the crops using selective weed killers and suitable insecticides, and also to combat the fungal diseases in such crops using suitable antifungal products.
Independently of these commonly employed measures, it is very desirable to exert action or influence on the crops themselves in order to stimulate or selectively orient their physiological development, such as to improve the yields therefrom.